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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. snap — to click
  3. bass — low music
  4. tube — a container
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. object — a thing
  8. object — an aim
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. club — a group
  12. object — to protest
  13. tube — the underground
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — for golf
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. scale — size or range
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. scale — in music
  20. bass — the fish
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. pit — in a race
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. pit — a hole

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com